Here is an analysis of defamation based on the provided sources.
Nature of Defamation
Defamation involves the imputation of a crime, vice, defect, real or imaginary, or any act, omission, condition, status, or circumstance which tends to dishonor, discredit, or put a person in contempt. The purpose is to protect the honor and reputation of an individual. The statement must be defamatory in nature.
Forms of Defamation
Defamation can take several forms:
- Libel: Committed by means of writing, printing, lithography, engraving, radio, phonograph, painting, theatrical exhibition, cinematographic exhibition, or any similar means.
- Electronic Libel (Online Libel/Cyberlibel): A form of libel defined under the Cybercrime Prevention Act, committed through a computer system or other similar means. It has the same elements as libel under the Revised Penal Code, with the difference being the manner or mode of publication.
- Slander (Oral Defamation): Committed by uttering defamatory words. It can be classified as grave or slight depending on its nature, the expressions used, the personal relations of the parties, and surrounding circumstances. Uttering defamatory words in the heat of anger, depending on the context, may constitute slight oral defamation.
- Slander by Deed: Committed by performing an act, not constituting another crime against honor, in the presence of other persons, which casts dishonor, discredit, or contempt upon the offended party. Examples include slapping someone in public or spitting on their face. It is considered a complex crime with serious physical injuries if the act also causes such injuries, in which case it is not covered by the simple crime of Slander by Deed.
Key Elements
While specific formulations vary between libel and slander, the essential elements generally include:
- Imputation of a Discreditable Act or Circumstance: The statement or act must attribute to a person a crime, vice, defect, or other condition or act that tends to cause dishonor, discredit, or contempt.
- Publicity: The defamatory imputation must be made public or known to a third person. For written defamation, publication means making it known to someone other than the person defamed. Sending a sealed letter containing libelous matter to the defamed person is not considered publication unless intended to be read by others. For oral defamation and slander by deed, it must be committed in the presence of others.
- Malice: The imputation must be made with malice. Malice can be either malice in law, which is presumed when a defamatory imputation is made, or malice in fact, which requires proof of ill-will or purpose to injure.
Identification of the Person Defamed
For a defamation case to be actionable, the person defamed must be identified or identifiable from the contents of the defamatory statement. It is not strictly necessary that the person be named, but the allusion must be sufficient to allow recognition by intrinsic reference or from facts and circumstances known to the reader. Defamatory remarks directed at a class or group of persons are generally not actionable unless the statements are so sweeping that they apply to every individual in the group or specify individuals within the group.
Malice and Privileged Communication
Malice is presumed in a defamatory imputation. However, this presumption can be overcome by proving the truth of the imputation (in some cases) and that it was published with good motives and for justifiable ends.
A privileged communication is an exception to the presumption of malice. Privileged communications can be either absolute or qualified.
- Absolute Privilege: Communications that are not actionable even if made with actual malice. Examples include statements made by members of Congress in the discharge of their functions and statements made in judicial proceedings.
- Qualified Privilege (Conditional Privilege): Communications that are not actionable if made without actual malice. If a qualified privileged communication is shown to have been made with actual malice, the privilege is lost, and the imputation becomes actionable. Actual malice requires proof of knowledge that the statement was false or reckless disregard of whether it was false or not.
Prosecution
Prosecution for libel and slander must typically be initiated upon the complaint of the offended party. However, an imputation of a crime which can be prosecuted de oficio allows the crime of defamation to be prosecuted de oficio as well. The venue for defamation cases varies depending on the form of defamation and the parties involved.